Hispanics: U.S. Demographic Snapshot

50.5 million: The number of people identifying as Hispanic in the U.S. Hispanics make up 16% of the U.S. population.

27: The median age for Hispanics. The cohort is younger than the general U.S. public, which boasts a median age of 37.

22%: The percentage of Hispanics 25 years and over that some college or an associate's degree. 27 percent have a high school diploma; while 38 percent have less than a high school diploma. About 9 percent percent have a bachelor's degree.

62%: The percentage of Hispanics who possess at least a high school diploma or higher.

18.5 million: The number of Hispanics who were born in the U.S. Thirty-seven percent of Hispanics say they were born outside of the country.

16.2%: The largest plurality of Hispanics are employed in the educational services or health care industries. This is followed by arts, entertainment, and recreation (13 percent) and retail trade (11.3 percent).

$42,151: The median family income for Hispanics. That's much lower higher than the median income for U.S. families in general ($62,112).

23.3%: The percentage of Hispanics living in poverty status. That's almost 10 points higher than the poverty rate overall of 14.4 percent.

Other Facts of Note

15.2 million: The growth of the Hispanic population between 2000 and 2010. More than half of the growth in the total population of the U.S. (27.3 million) between 2000 and 2010 was due to the increase in the Hispanic population.

43%: The rate at which the total population of those identifying as Hispanic a grew from 2000 to 2010. That's four times the growth of the total population, about 10 percent.

41%: The percentage of Hispanics, in 2010, who lived in the West, the largest concentration. About 16 percent of Hispanics lived in the South. In the Northeast and the Midwest, Hispanics accounted for 13 and 7 percent respectively.

Data based on the 2011 American Community Survey and the 2010 Census brief. Census respondents who identified as of Hispanic or Latino origin may be of any race.

This article is part of our Next America: Communities project, which is supported by a grant from Emerson Collective.

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